


We Are Not Machines

by Vanitas_Repliku_26



Category: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: A lot of shit is going on, Canon-Typical Violence, Dubious Consent, F/M, M/M, Mpreg, Not Beta Read, The author needs validation, dubcon, human experimentation au, no beta we die like men, please comment, sperm rape
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:21:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23822995
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vanitas_Repliku_26/pseuds/Vanitas_Repliku_26
Summary: They had been in the labs for as long as they could remember as Shinra experimented on them and others to create the perfect SOLDIER. On loan from Niflheim, an MT candidate arrives to the labs to see if the mix of mako and meteor shards could produce what the two countries wanted. Cloud and Zack form an escape plan, taking Prompto (and a cat-dog) with them, and hide out in the slums beneath Midgar. Of course the recent experiment on Cloud creates on more problem: pregnancy. AVALANCHE showing up complicates matters further.
Relationships: Aera Mirus Fleuret/Ardyn Izunia, Cid Highwind/Vincent Valentine, Genesis Rhapsodos/Sephiroth, Gladiolus Amicitia/Ignis Scientia, Lunafreya Nox Fleuret/Nyx Ulric, Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum, Rufus Shinra/Tseng, Squall Leonhart/Cloud Strife, Zack Fair/Aerith Gainsborough
Comments: 12
Kudos: 65





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Jokul_Nightfury_Frost](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jokul_Nightfury_Frost/gifts).



> In which a life is established.

The room was small, walls made from metal. A bed had been carved out of the topmost corner, hard and cold. A stiff pillow and thin blanket were the only offerings of comfort except the blanket could barely be counted as a shield against the ever present chill. There were only two windows, one on either wall. Both windows had bars on them to prevent the occupants of the other rooms from climbing inside. A single door lead into the broader test area, barred as well. In the corner of the room was the blinking red light of the camera that was always watching the occupant’s movements.

This was all Cloud had known. Cold walls, cold beds, and even colder scientists. The worst was Hojo who spearheaded everything, rarely did he come to do the dirty work himself.

Cloud had run away from the small, no-name town of Nibelheim at a young age to join up in the elite group called SOLDIER. He hadn’t expected that Shinra kept a dirty secret from its recruits. They took a select few from the recruit pile and let Hojo have them to be experimented on with mako. Apparently trying to create the perfect soldier for SOLDIER. Cloud had been given mako shots for long enough that his green eyes had turned blue with a small ring of green around his pupil.

Tests were run daily to assess the subject’s resistance to a variety of stimuli as well as exams for stamina. Cloud had grown accustomed to them. He could withstand an array of temperature ranges longer than a normal person was supposed to handle them and he could run for nearly forty-five minutes before he tired. Apparently, that was what the scientists were looking for as they tattooed a number 4 on the back of his left hand. The higher the number, the better the stock, he assumed.

Cloud was lying on his bed, hands behind his head and one leg propped up as he waited for a scientist to come collect him from his room for a test that day.

There was a bang on the wall to his left before two more bangs followed the first.

Once the banging had stopped, Cloud pulled one hand out from under his head, rapping on the wall in response.

Zack was his neighbor with a number 5 on his collarbone. Zack had been in the facility for nearly as long as Cloud had and the two had bonded over the years of confinement.

They had at first spoken to each other through the windows that separated their rooms but had soon found out through some extremely painful tests that speaking to other subjects was frowned upon. To keep in contact with each other without drawing suspicion from anyone, the two came up with a modified Morse code to communicate.

If the scientists watching them had ever figured out what they were doing they remained silent on the matter.

 **Hey,** Zack’s tapping said.

 **Hey,** Cloud replied.

While he waited for Zack’s reply, he stretched his arms above his head with a quiet groan, the thin tank top riding up slightly.

Better clothes would had been nice, but Cloud supposed since they were treated as less than human that frayed tank tops and dirty slacks was all they were allowed to wear.

Zack started tapping again and Cloud tilted his head to listen.

**How are you?**

Cloud rolled his eyes at the mundane question. He really ought to not entertain it. How did Zack think he was doing?

Then again, Zack always asked how he was doing and Cloud realized it was to try and have some sense of normalcy in their lives.

Cloud tapped out, **Waiting for tests.**

Zack didn’t respond right away and Cloud could almost see him nodding.

They were to both be tested today. Could wondered what kind of tests Zack would have.

There was a small tap against his wall but before Zack could continue the conversation there was the sound of a key being inserted into the lock on Cloud’s door.

Cloud pushed himself into a sitting position as the door creaked open, narrowing his eyes at the scientist that came inside.

“Come on, number 4. It’s time for your tests.”

Cloud remained silent as he stood up, walking past the scientist to leave his room.

The door to his room was closed and the man walked past Cloud to lead him to the testing area.

Cloud followed, glancing over his shoulder to see that another scientist had gotten Zack out of his room as well.

Zack grinned when he caught sight of Cloud, raising his hand in greeting as he followed the scientist.

Zack and Cloud were the same age, around seventeen, but Zack was taller by a few inches. His black hair was spiky though not as spiky as Cloud’s blond hair. Zack jokingly nicknamed Cloud ‘Spike’ due to his hairstyle and the nickname stuck.

Even before the tests, Zack’s eyes had been blue and the mako only enhanced their brightness.

With all the things happening to them, Zack was always optimistic and Cloud clung to that optimism to avoid falling into a depression.

Cloud smiled slightly in return, raising his hand in reply.

Zack gave a thumbs up for encouragement before turning forward again.

Cloud sighed as he continued to follow the scientist through the lab filled with enormous tubes and machines. Some tubes were empty while some were filled with a green, bubbling liquid.

Cloud thought it was perhaps mako but he didn’t want to find out. The memory of being submerged in liquid during the first testing phase had always brought nightmares of drowning and Cloud didn’t want to experience that again.

Opening the door to a room, the scientist gestured to it. “Go inside.”

As soon as Cloud entered the room, the door shut behind him.

The only thing in the room was a treadmill and a few probes to keep track of his heart rate and respiration.

Stepping onto the treadmill, Cloud slid the probes beneath his shirt, attaching them to his chest. He already knew the drill for the stamina test.

There was a click and then a crackle before the scientist’s voice filtered through the P.A. system in the room. “All right, we’ll start out slow then go faster. Your record is forty-five minutes and twenty seconds.”

So, they wanted to see if he could beat his record, huh? Challenge accepted.

The treadmill started up and Cloud began to walk. He knew after a while the treadmill would kick him into a job then a run where the timing of how long he could go before tiring would start.

The scientists tested the stamina of Cloud and Zack daily. Cloud didn’t understand why, but assumed it was to see how strong they were. How close they were to being a perfected soldier.

Cloud shook his head as he began to job. His heart rate hadn’t elevated yet and his respiration was still steady. Cloud didn’t need to look to know the scientist was taking notes. Probably comparing them with the notes from the previous tests to see if there was a change, a strengthening of his breathing and heart.

The treadmill whirred as it was set to a higher level and Cloud ran.

A timer popped up on a clock in front of him the second he did, telling him how long he had been running.

His goal was to surpass forty-five minutes.

Cloud stared at a fixed point in front of him, blocking out the timer and the beeping of his heart rate monitor. He focused instead on keeping his breathing steady even as sweat prickled the back of his neck and chilled his lower back where his shirt began to stick to his skin.

Before he knew it, he was slowing down as his muscles burned and his breath rasped. A glance at his heart rate told him it was in the upper 100s not that he needed to look to feel his heart beating in his chest.

In response to Cloud’s change of pace, the treadmill decelerated, allowing Cloud to cool down.

Cloud glanced at the clock in front of him to see what it was stopped at.

Fifty minutes and fifty-five seconds. He had run nearly six minutes longer than yesterday.

“Excellent work,” the scientist said in a bored tone like he was just saying what he had to in order to make Cloud feel like he had done a good job. “Once your heart rate is back to normal, we’ll move on to the next test.”

Cloud nodded, he continued to walk until the treadmill stopped and he stepped off. The cold air in the room didn’t help, making him feel chilled as the sweat began to dry.

The scientist opened the door. “Come along.”

Cloud trailed after the scientist, neither of them making small talk as he was lead through the main part of the lab once more. Something caught his eye and Cloud slowed down to a stop.

Inside a circular glass cage lay a small, red dog. Or Cloud assumed it was a dog. He hadn’t seen it before. He definitely would have remembered a dog with that red of fur and a long tail tipped with a tiny flame.

The dog looked up when it caught sight of Cloud staring at it, ear flicking as it tilted its head.

“Hurry up!” the scientist snapped upon noticing the lack of compliance. “We don’t have all day!”

Cloud continued to walk after the scientist, giving one last look at the dog.

The scientist paused in front of a steel door, grabbing the handle and opening it.

The door was insulated and a blast of arctic air hit Cloud as soon as it was opened.

“Get in,” the scientist ordered once the door was open.

So, they were going to test his resistance to subzero temperatures as well. That wasn’t so bad, Cloud supposed as he slowly entered the freezer.

The door closed behind Cloud, sealing him in until the scientist deigned it long enough to release him.

Cloud sighed, his breath puffing out in front of him as the hair along his arms stood up. He rubbed his arms to keep them warm then began to pace.

Sitting still would only make the stiffness in his joints worse. He was grateful to be resistant to frostbite; any normal person wouldn’t last as long in such conditions without serious repercussions.

Time had no meaning in the freezer. He would be let out once the test was deemed to be finished. Even though he paced, his body eventually began to shiver, reacting to the prolonged cold. Cloud stuck his hands in his armpits in an effort to keep his fingers warm. He waited impatiently for the door to open so he could leave.

After a while, perhaps a few more minutes, the door slid open.

Cloud left the freezer quickly.

“Tests are done for the day,” said the scientist, scribbling on a clipboard. “Take a shower then return to your cell.”

Cloud released a shaky breath but said nothing.

A shower wouldn’t help. The water down here was set to one setting: cold. They automatically turned off after two minutes.

Cloud returned to his cell. He knew the tests weren’t quite over with as blood tests were taken every day to determine the level of mako in the bloodstream.

Too much mako caused poisoning, rendering the afflicted catatonic with little chance of recovering. Those who did recover had an unfortunate side effect: Geostigma, a disease that manifested as black sores. Currently, there was no cure for the stigma and many died from it as it attacked the nervous system.

Cloud had heard it wasn’t a pleasant way to go, but he hadn’t physically seen anyone with the stigma, heard only the whispers of the scientists as they passed his cell.

Opening the door to his cell, Cloud shut the door behind him and the door locked automatically.

He sat on the edge of his bed, flexing his stiff fingers in an effort to work some feeling back into them.

Beneath the small gap in his door a tray was slid into his room. It contained a carton of dumbapple juice and a square of hardtack.

With a sigh, Cloud pushed himself to his feet, picking up the tray and returning to his bed. As he bit into the hard bread there was a knock at his wall.

“Hey,” Zack said from the other side.

“Hey,” Cloud responded, glancing at the camera before turning his back a bit to hide his face.

“What’d they test on you today, Spike?”

“Besides my stamina? Resistance to cold temperatures.”

Zack groaned. “Lucky bastard. I got stuck in the heat of a desert. I’m going to stink for a week.”

Cloud gave a quiet chuckle. The chill had mostly left his body and while the hardtack wasn’t an exceptional meal it did warm him up slightly.

There was a heavy sigh from Zack. “Man, I wonder if we’re ever going to get out of here.”

Cloud remained silent, picking at his hardtack. He highly doubted Hojo would let them go so easily. They were too valuable.

Zack didn’t say anything else and Cloud assumed he was asleep, the tests usually tired him out. Or he was just that tired all the time.

Cloud set his half-eaten hardtack back on the tray, opening the container of dumbapple juice, drinking it.

Dumbapples came from Banora, a village far away from Midgar. At least that’s what Cloud had heard.

The juice wasn’t sweet and a bit on the bland side. Cloud wondered how the actual apple tasted. Maybe it tasted better than the byproduct.

Cloud finished the apple juice and took his tray back to the door, sliding it under the gap before returning to his bed. He laid on his back, hands going behind his head for support as he stared at the ceiling.

“Hey, Spike?”

Cloud turned his head to the wall when Zack spoke.

“Ever think we’ll see the sky again?”

Cloud hummed, looking back at the ceiling. He barely remembered the sky, the last time he had seen it had been as a kid so his memory of it was hazy.

It was blue, bright was the mako that changed their eye color, and had clouds in the them. Cloud found it ironic he was named after puffy white things in the sky. His mother must have had a sense of humor.

Cloud turned on his side as his heart panged at the thought of his mother. He hadn’t seen her in so long and she was sure to be worrying about him since he had never written to her. Perhaps she thought he was dead.

Cloud shook his head to shake off the thoughts. Reminiscing wasn’t going to do anything to help.

“I don’t know, Zack. Maybe someday.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Zack murmured. “Night.”

“Night.” Cloud sighed and closed his eyes to sleep. He dreamed of the sky.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a neighbor appears

The click of the key into the lock caused Cloud’s ear to twitch.

A light sleeper by habit, the unlocking of his door made him open his eyes, the blue glowing in the darkness of his cell. He sat up as the door opened and a scientist appeared at the threshold.

“Get up,” the scientist ordered sharply.

Cloud swung his legs out of bed and stood, making his way to the door.

Stepping to the side, the scientist allowed Cloud to leave the cell but Cloud halted when he saw that Zack was being taken out at the same time and heading in his direction.

The scientist pushed Cloud to get him moving. “Come on, move!”

Cloud began to walk but walked slow enough to stay by Zack’s side. “What’s going on? We don’t usually have tests together.”

Zack shook his head with a slight shrug. “Color me surprised, Spike. Could be Hojo’s getting bored.”

Or more interested. Either way the both of them having tests completed together couldn’t be a good sign.

Cloud remained silent as the scientists lead them to a door which slid open at their arrival.

At the gesture to go inside, Zack and Cloud entered the room, glancing around.

It was a large room, empty except for three doors on either wall leading to who knew what. A room was situated above the door across from Cloud and Zack, the windows bulletproof. It was an observation room meant for the scientists to watch the subjects below without endangering themselves. The two scientists were sitting at a desk, typing furiously as someone walked up to stand between them.

Despite wearing the same white lab coat as his subordinates, Hojo stood out from them with his long black hair tied back in a ponytail and small round glasses perched on his nose. He was in his middle age years, far older than all the other scientists in the complex.

“Hojo,” Cloud whispered, narrowing his eyes at the head scientist.

What was he doing there? He never came to observe the tests. If he did, he had remained out of sight.

Hojo gave a razor sharp grin, teeth bared slightly. He leaned forward, one hand pressing a button and a crackle was heard as the P.A. system turned on.

“Numbers 4 and 5, I’d like you to do a little clean up for me, if you don’t mind.”

The back of Cloud’s neck prickled at the oily words. What sort of clean up?

A whir sounded behind them and Zack turned to see a rack of swords lifting up from a compartment in the floor.

“Use those swords, or don’t,” Hojo said with a chuckle. “I don’t mind using your bodies for dissection.”

Cloud growled, clenching his hands as he glared up at Hojo.

Hojo stared back at him with an amused smile.

Zack walked over to the sword rack, looking at the offered blades.

They were simple training blades, sharp and thin. In here, a controlled environment, they were suitable. As a weapon in the world outside against who knew what? Nothing but a stick.

Zack picked up two swords, taking one back to Cloud and holding it out.

Cloud broke his staring contests with Hojo to look at it then Zack. “What?”

“Whatever he’s sending out will mop the floor with you if you don’t have this, Spike. Take it.”

Cloud gave a heavy sigh before he snatched the sword from Zack’s hand. “Why is he even doing this?”

“To test our battle prowess, I imagine.”

Cloud snorted as the three doors opened.

A low growling emanated from the rooms beyond the doors. Three humanoid beasts leaped out of the shadows, snarling at Cloud and Zack. The creatures were dark in color with red lines beneath their ropy skin. An appendage jutted out from behind their neck.

Zack’s hand tightened on the hand of his sword, eyes widening in distress.

Cloud recognized the creatures. They were failed experiments that had turned into monsters. He knew it was a subtle warning from Hojo.

_Do as I say or this is what you’ll become: monsters then fodder for stronger experiments._

As the monsters loped closer, Cloud held his sword up above his shoulders, blade pointed at them. He jumped at the nearest one, sword swinging down, slicing into the rubbery skin and spreading purple blood everywhere.

Zack didn’t attack, didn’t move as his body screamed at him to stop Cloud from attacking.

They were humans. He could hear them screeching in pain as the sword slit their skin.

Zack knew that was a lie though.

These weren’t humans. Not anymore. Whatever humanity they had was taken by the monstrous instincts that now drove them, ripped to shreds and devoured until only bloodlust remained.

As Cloud slashed again at one of the failed experiments, a flash out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he turned slightly to see one of the experiments stealthily approaching the zoned out Zack. Turning sharply to charge at the experiment, Cloud was blocked by another, preventing him from reaching Zack.

“Zack!”

Zack blinked at Cloud’s voice then quickly dodged to the side as the experiment lashed out with its claws. He turned to face his attacker, lunging forward to drive his sword through its chest.

It shrieked and tried to claw Zack.

Zack yanked his sword out to jump backward, blood spurting from the experiment’s wound.

It released an eerie wail, the other two experiments copying it as if they could feel its pain.

The shriek pierced their ears, causing Zack and Cloud to double over in pain, one hand covering their ears.

With the two stunned, the experiments lunged at their prey.

Zack shook his head as the ringing in his ears faded, looking up sharply in time to see the experiment coming towards him. He shoved his sword forward, piercing the experiment through the skull. Twisting his sword quickly then swinging out sideways, Zack ended the creature’s suffering.

The other two experiments had Cloud pinned to the ground, trying to bite him. He was using his sword to block their teeth, using his feet in an attempt to kick them off.

Zack stabbed one through the head and the last one screeched as its companion died, taking its attention off Cloud.

That gave Cloud enough time to pierce its throat, blood splattering on his face. When it fell limp, he shoved its body off, pushing himself up.

Zack sighed, holding out his hand to help Cloud up.

Cloud took the hand gratefully and Zack hauled him to his feet. As Cloud began wiping off the sticky blood, clapping sounded over the speakers.

Zack and Cloud glowered up at Hojo who was grinning.

“Well done. You lasted longer than I suspected. But can you do this next part? SOLDIERs always follow orders, you know.”

“Wait, please!” a voice cried. “I’ll do better next time, I swear!”

Zack looked toward the voice to see a scientist being forcibly dragged into the room by two Shinra grunts.

The grunts were low rank SOLDIER, probably security detail. Their three lens helmets helped them to see in the dark and scan threats.

The scientist was thrown to the floor and was apparently to frightened to get up, curled up into a sniveling ball.

Cloud stared at the scientist then his eyes flicked to Hojo then the two guards.

Both guards wielded small sticks instead of the typical guns security held. The ends of the sticks were red. The sticks were pokers like the ones used on stubborn cattle, but smaller.

It didn’t take a genius to understand what Hojo wanted of them.

“Unwavering loyalty is a trademark of the SOLDIER,” Hojo said, staring down at the two, all bared teeth and sharp eyes. “Kill him.”

Zack stared at Hojo a second longer before he looked down at the scientist. He glanced at Cloud who appeared conflicted about this test.

Fighting and killing monsters was one thing, but killing a defenseless human?

At the delay, Hojo gave a loud sigh before clucking his tongue. “Ethical dilemmas don’t exist in SOLDIER, boys. Kill him.”

“Please, don’t,” the scientist whimpered, staring at the two miserably.

Zack frowned then dropped his sword. “I won’t.”

The scientist appeared relieved as Cloud also released his sword.

Hojo snarled. “Wrong answer! Correct them.”

The two guards moved forward at the command, their sticks at the ready.

When one lunged forward to press the stick against Zack, he responded by grabbing the guard’s wrist, yanking him forward to knee him in the stomach.

As the guard dropped to the ground, Cloud pivoted on one foot, unleashing a roundhouse kick that connected with the other guard’s neck, sending him skidding across the floor.

Hojo snarled at the defiance before he breathed out, running a hand through his hair. “Fine. Send those two to their cells to wait fort the next test. And send that one to the hounds.”

As the scientist came to take Zack and Cloud back to their cells, two more guards came to get the scientist who began to babble.

“N-no, wait, you can’t do this!”

Zack felt a pang of sympathy and pity for the guy. He wasn’t sure which would have been better mercy: if they had killed him or him being torn apart by Shinra mutts.

Cloud watched the scientist being dragged away by the guards, appearing to be thinking the same things as Zack.

* * *

Zack hummed to himself as he continued to do his squats, waiting for the scientists to return. They had dropped them off in their cells over an hour ago and had yet to retrieve them.

Zack wondered if it was because they were setting up for the next test. He paused mid-squat when he heard scuffling and a voice going past his cell.

“I don’t want to be here! I’ll behave, I promise!”

Curious, Zack moved closer to his door to try and see out of it.

The voice was young, maybe close to his age. Another unfortunate grunt perhaps?

Zack moved to the window separating his cell from Cloud’s. “Hey, Cloud.”

“I hear it.”

Cloud was already on his feet, moving to the window that separated his cell from an empty one.

The door beside his cell opened, the person being thrown in before the door closed. Quiet sniffling was the only sound after that.

Standing on his tip toes, Cloud grabbed the bars to pull himself up so he got a better view of his new neighbor.

The boy had blond hair and blue eyes. Freckles dusted his cheeks. Underneath one of his wrists was what appeared to be a barcode. If that was a way of marking the blond, Cloud knew he wasn’t from Shinra or even Midgar.

“Hey,” Cloud whispered, trying to get the blond’s attention. “Psst.”

The blond looked up sharply and met Cloud’s eyes. He quickly moved himself back with a panicked gasp, back hitting the wall.

“Easy. I’m not going to hurt you. What’s your name?”

The boy sniffled, rubbing his nose with his arm before he said weakly, “Prompto.”

“I’m Cloud.”

“I’m Zack!” Zack called from his cell, eager to be in on the conversation.

“That’s Zack,” Cloud repeated. “Where are you from?”

“Niflheim.”

Cloud narrowed his eyes. “Nibelheim?”

“No.” Prompto shook his head, slowly relaxing. “Niflheim. With an f.”

“Ah. Haven’t heard of it before.”

“It’s near Lucis….I’m supposed to be an MT….but I guess I’m defective.”

Now Cloud had heard of MTs. Robots or something that weren’t quite robots. They were powered by meteor shards, melted mythril lubricating joints.

If this guy was supposed to be an MT candidate then that meant that perhaps this Niflheim was attempting to see how well meteor shards and mako mixed.

“I see…” Cloud murmured, not liking the implications at all.

Niflheim loaning MT candidates to mix their meteor shards with mako in an attempt to make the perfect soldier couldn’t possibly end well.

The sound of a key in his door caused Cloud to drop back to the ground, quickly stepping away from the window.

A scowling scientist stepped into the threshold. “Come on.”

Cloud followed the scientist, glancing at Zack’s cell to that Zack’s door was still closed. Perhaps they were only coming to get him then. The co-testing period was over with.

Cloud was a bit disappointed but remained silent, following the scientist until they came to a room with walls set up in the middle of it.

The walls weren’t too much taller than the average person, tall enough they couldn’t be easily climbed.

As Cloud was directed to what appeared to be a doorway, Cloud realized that what he was staring at was a maze. He was going to be tested in a maze? That didn’t seem like Hojo.

“Your goal is to get to the exit of the maze in less than two minutes,” the scientist explained, scribbling on a clipboard. He pointed his pen at a timer hung above the maze’s entrance.

It turned on, displaying two minutes before it slowly began to tick down.

Cloud took that as his cue to get going and entered the maze. He took to his own pace, ignoring the fact that was being timed, making sure he ran into as little dead ends as possible.

A growl sounded to his right as cloud came to an intersection and when he looked he saw a blood hound standing several feet away, whip-like appendage jutting from its shoulder blades flicking. A second growl sounded to Cloud’s right as another blood hound appeared.

Now that was more like Hojo.

Glancing between the two blood hounds as they stalked closer, Cloud took off down the path in front of him.

Both blood hounds howled and gave chase.

At a rush it was difficult to keep track of which path he had already gone down, but Cloud didn’t feel in the mood to be bitten by beasts.

Turning a corner sharply, Cloud skidded to a stop as he found a wall looming over him. He turned to see the twin blood hounds slowly creeping closer, having their quarry cornered.

Glancing at the wall behind him, Cloud released an annoyed breath before he charged at the blood hounds.

With snarls, the two dogs leaped towards him, teeth bared.

At the height of their jump, Cloud dropped to the ground, sliding under them. He quickly scrambled to his feet as the blood hounds yelped when they struck the wall, running back the way he had come from to take a different route.

Cloud ran into no more dead ends after that, outrunning the blood hounds until he came out of the maze’s exit.

The timer stopped at twenty seconds as he passed the exit. The hounds were on his heels, but a sharp whistle caused them to halt. They loped towards their trainer, panting.

The scientist who had initiated the test strolled over, not looking up from scribbling notes on the clipboard he held. “Your tests are done for the day, number 4. Go to the lab to get your blood drawn then retire to your cell.”

Cloud grit his teeth then nodded stiffly, walking in the direction of the blood lab. He hadn’t had a mako injection for a day or two so he wasn’t sure why he needed a blood test. There had to be something else to it and he had a feeling he didn’t want to know what.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which an escape plan is plotted and an experiment is done

Keyboards continued to clack as scientist typed, looking between their keys and the screens in front of them.

As the scientists continued to work, Hojo paced behind them, hands clasped behind his back.

A larger monitor dominated the space above where the scientists worked, the figure of a human on the screen as numbers scrolled past. Every few seconds red flashed across the screen as the systems rejected the inputs.

Hojo grumbled to himself as he stopped pacing, staring up at the screen to see if there was any change. “There has to be a match. My calculations are never off. He has the same genetic disposition as number two, I’m sure of it.”

Hojo resumed pacing, continuing to mumble to himself.

After a bit more of cross-referencing, the monitor beeped and flashed green.

Hojo paused, gazing up at the screen. A slow smile spread across his face before he gave a short laugh. “I knew it. He is able to conceive. Excellent.”

Hojo could move onto the next phase of his plan trying to create the perfect soldier.

“Get those two ready. Once the serum is complete, number four is to be brought to me.”

“Yes, sir.”

* * *

Cloud continued to stare at the ceiling blankly, unable to go back to sleep. He had woken up earlier than normal, earlier than he was sure Zack or their new neighbor Prompto was awake. With nothing better to do, he was just staring at the ceiling, waiting for the scientist to come take him to his tests.

There was a quiet knock on the wall to his left and Cloud turned his head. Je was surprised that Zack was awake as well. In response, he tapped his foot against the wall so Zack knew he heard him.

**Hey, Spike. Can’t sleep?**

Cloud rolled his eyes at the obvious question before tapping in reply, **No. You?**

**Thinking.**

Oh, that was dangerous. It was never goo when Zack was preoccupied with thinking about something.

 **What about?** Cloud asked warily, not sure if he actually wanted to know the answer or not.

**Escaping.**

Cloud snorted loudly at the response. He looked towards Prompto’s cell when he heard the other stirring and tapped back quieter so he wouldn’t wake the other. **You’re crazy.**

**Don’t you want to get out?**

Of course, he wanted to get out! Why wouldn’t he want to leave? But escaping where they were wasn’t going to be a walk in the park.

**Cameras, Zack.**

Zack didn’t respond for a while and Cloud imagined that he was looking at the cameras mounted on the wall, always trained on them. After a bit, Zack replied.

**Well, we could always just block it off.**

Cloud sighed at the admirable answer. Zack was really serious about his escape plan. **No exit, Zack.**

Once again, Zack was quiet as he took in his surroundings, looking for any weaknesses without appearing too obvious.

Cloud let the subject drop.

Escaping was suicidal. There just wasn’t any way for it to happen without killing themselves.

“What are you guys doing?” Prompto asked from his cell. “What’s that tapping mean?”

With a sigh, Cloud got out of his bed and made his way over to the window. He made sure his face wasn’t easily seen by the camera so he could talk to Prompto without worry of someone reading his lips. “Zack is saying we should escape.”

“Escape?” Prompto asked uncertainly. “Why?”

“Do you want to remain here?”

Prompto fell silent for a bit before he said, “B-but, there isn’t any escape route.”

“That’s what I told him.”

Once again, Prompto didn’t respond and Cloud took it as the conversation being over and done with.

Just as good, he supposed when a key in the lock caught his attention. He moved away from the wall as the door opened and a scientist appeared at the threshold.

“Come along, number four.”

Quiet, Cloud left his cell and became surprised when he saw Zack also being led out of his cell. Were they doing tests together again? If it was anything like last time, Cloud wasn’t all that excited.

“More tests together?” Zack asked with a grin. “How exciting.”

“Get moving,” a scientist grunted, appearing annoyed. “Come on.”

Zack gave a shrug, allowing the scientist to lead him.

Cloud fell into step behind him. He didn’t say anything when he saw that they weren’t heading to a testing area, but to the blood draw room.

Why did they want to draw their blood? Cloud had given blood yesterday. It was unusual to draw blood two days in a row.

Zack appeared to be unsure about the reasoning as well but remained quiet as the door opened and they were lead inside.

Cloud had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Hojo was up to something.

* * *

Zack rubbed his arm as the scientist lead him back to his cell.

The blood draw made no sense since he hadn’t had a mako injection for a while.

Zack glanced behind him to see that Cloud was being lead in a different direction rather than to the cells. Perhaps he was going to be tested then.

The difference in routine didn’t make Zack feel comfortable. He was sure Hojo was planning something, but he had no proof.

Once the door to his cell had closed and the scientists had left, a noise caught Zack’s attention. He went to the window, looking through his window.

“Where are they taking Cloud?” Prompto asked.

“Probably to start testing. I think.”

“You don’t know for sure?”

“This is highly unusual, ok?” Zack huffed, backing away from the window as he crossed his arms. “I don’t know what’s going on.”

* * *

Cloud glanced back at Zack as he was lead in a different direction than the cells.

“Are we going to testing?” Cloud asked, glancing at the scientists.

“Keep quiet,” one snapped. “You’ll see soon enough.”

Cloud gave a quiet sigh. Judging by that reaction he assumed he wasn’t going to testing. So where was he going?

The scientists lead him to an exam room with monitors on a wall and a single exam table. A mako injection after a blood draw? That was unusual.

“Lay down,” one scientist ordered, gesturing to the table. “He’ll be here momentarily.”

Cloud didn’t want to ask who ‘he’ was. Hopefully, it wasn’t who he thought it was.

Deciding to go along with the orders, Cloud got up on the table and laid down. Almost as soon as he did, cuffs latched onto his wrists and ankles from compartments beneath the table, pinning him down.

Cloud pulled on the binds with a grunt. He normally didn’t get pinned down for a mako injection. This was something else then. But what? It could be any number of things that Hojo could concoct in that twisted mind of his.

“Hello, number four.”

Cloud turned his head back to scowl at Hojo as the scientist approached. “What exactly do you want?”

“Just to test a new experiment.” Hojo went to the keyboards beneath the monitors, beginning to type. “You have good genetics, four. Just like number two.”

Cloud narrowed his eyes as he watched Hojo.

Number two? It sounded familiar. He couldn’t match a name or face to the number, only remembering red and black.

“I almost had what I wanted, but then number one had to rebel against my wishes, taking numbers two and three with him. A shame. These experiments could have been finished if they had just stayed put like good little soldiers.”

Now Cloud recognized the numbers. Number one had supposedly been close to a perfected soldier. There was still something wrong with him that made the final stages difficult to achieve. Numbers one, two and three had escaped over ten years ago when Cloud had first arrived at the testing facility when he had been seven. Ever since their escape, security had been tightened to prevent a second escape from happening.

What was he to number two though? Cloud didn’t know the dude.

“What does this have to do with them?” Cloud asked as he watched Hojo typing.

On the screen, two strands of DNA appeared, twirling in place. The two strands came closer until they fused with each other to create a new strand of DNA.

“He has everything to do with you, my boy!” Hojo cackled as he typed faster. “You both have the rare genetic profile for parturiency.”

“Uh, layman’s terms?”

Hojo sighed as he tapped one more key before facing Cloud with a grin. “You can get pregnant.”

Cloud paled as he put two and two together. “That blood test—”

“Was to extract your DNA, yes. This new experiment will be your biological child.”

Cloud pulled on the straps around his wrists to try and break them. “You need an egg to even—”

“I made an artificial egg. Your DNA combined with number five’s DNA created a very nice sperm that should take very well.”

At the mention of Zack’s number, Cloud paused. “Zack? You mixed…?”

“So, technically, the child is yours and his by blood. Be grateful I didn’t mix your DNA with some heathen’s DNA.” Hojo turned his back to Cloud to continue typing. “Both your DNA together should create what I desire. Numbers one and two had their children, but then they had to leave so I couldn’t confirm if my experiment ever worked. I hope you don’t try anything so foolish.”

Cloud growled. “I’ll starve myself before I carry whatever creation you made.”

Hojo sighed ash he stopped typing. He shook his head then walked over to Cloud, grabbing a fistful of his hair and yanking hard. “You do anything to jeopardize my experiment and I’ll make sure number five suffers greatly for your transgressions.”

Cloud grit his teeth but remained silent as Hojo released his grip forcefully.

“I’ll take that as we have an understanding, then.” Hojo nodded and once again returned to the keyboard. “The serum should be ready shortly.”

Cloud said nothing. He didn’t want Hojo to do anything to Zack. The bastard would take pleasure in hurting Zack should Cloud step out of line. With the cameras he’d be able to make sure Cloud was eating. With the threat of harm against Zack, he didn’t want to do anything rash.

“I don’t even—”

“Have a womb?” Hojo asked. “Yes, it doesn’t normally show up on imaging scans. It’s smaller than a woman’s, hard to find. But through number two’s exam, I know where it is.”

Cloud scowled at Hojo before looking at his wrists, trying to slip them out of the straps. “You don’t even know if it will take.”

“It will. I made multiple sperm with yours and number five’s DNA. One is bound to take. Or two. I don’t care if you have one child or two or three; I just need it once its born to clone it.”

Of course, Hojo didn’t see a child as nothing more than an experiment. It made the bile rise in the back of Cloud’s throat as he yanked on the straps harder, the metal biting into his wrists.

The screen flashed green and from a compartment a tube lifted up. The tube was filled with a pale green liquid.

Hojo picked up the tube and latched it into an injector gun before he faced Cloud. “I would stop struggling if I were you. It hurts more if you do that.”

Cloud growled quietly. He didn’t stop.

With a sigh, Hojo pressed a button and another set of iron bars came up from the table, wrapping around Cloud’s middle to hold him still.

When Cloud tried to keep struggling, the binds squeezed tighter like an anaconda coiled around its prey. Cloud stopped struggling and the binds loosened a fraction to allow him to breathe.

“There we go.” Hojo moved closer, pushing up Cloud’s shirt to expose his stomach. “You just hold still and this will be over much more quickly.”

Cloud had no choice but to stay still as Hojo looked for whatever spot he needed to inject the serum.

After an uncomfortable amount of time, Hojo slipped the needle in at an angle right below Cloud’s belly button.

Cloud hissed at the burning that bloomed beneath his skin.

Once he was done, Hojo pulled back, patting Cloud’s cheek. “Smart boy.”

Cloud growled, jerking his head away.

The straps opened, allowing Cloud to sit up.

“You’re free to leave. Return to your cell.”

Cloud scowled at Hojo as he slid down from the table.

“And remember what I told you. I’m sure you don’t want your friend to get hurt, right?”

Cloud remained silent as he pushed past Hojo, making his way back to his cell. He put his hand against his stomach, the burning faded and leaving him feeling violated.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which an escape plan is set in motion and Destiny awakens

Zack looked up when he heard the door to Cloud’s cell open. He stood and went to the window, looking through it to see Cloud slowly making his way to his bed. “Hey, Spike. What happened?”

Cloud didn’t seem to hear him at first then looked at Zack before he looked away. “Nothing.”

Zack didn’t believe that at all. Cloud didn’t appear to be in the mood for prodding though, so Zack dropped the conversation.

Cloud sat on his bed then rolled on his side so he was facing the wall.

Zack caught sight of Prompto looking through the window.

Prompto glanced at Zack and gave a questioning look.

Zack shrugged then shook his head. He released the bars on the window, dropping to his feet.

It was probably better to leave Cloud alone for the time being. He would tell them when he was ready.

* * *

Cloud hadn’t woken up yet or he was still being quiet.

Zack was up pretty early so he assumed Cloud was still asleep. Zack had gotten restless sometime last night and was keeping himself busy while he waited for the other two to wake up or for the scientists to come get them.

After a few reps of squats and jumping jacks, Zack dropped to the ground to start push-ups. He noticed something as he lowered himself and paused briefly.

A vent was on the side of his bed, expelling cold air. How long had that vent been there? Zack had never noticed it before.

Continuing his push-ups, Zack stared at the vent out of the corner of his eye, gauging its size.

It looked large enough to squeeze through. Who knew where the larger ventilation system went to though, but it could prove to be an effective escape route.

After a few more reps and staring at the vent, Zack hopped to his feet.

While he stretched, a tray was slid into his room. He took the juice and waited until he could no longer hear any footsteps before he moved to the window to peer into Cloud’s room.

Cloud was still curled up on his bed, but Zack could see that his eyes were open. Zack caught sight of the tray on the flor and tilted his head a bit.

Instead of the typical hardtack, Cloud’s tray contained an apple and a bowl of what appeared to be oatmeal.

That was unusual.

Shaking his head, Zack cleared his throat. “Hey, Spike. I found something.”

Cloud glanced at him then went back to staring at the wall.

Prompto came to the window when he heard them talking. “What’s going on?”

“I think I found a good route. By your beds.”

“Beds?” Prompto repeated. He disappeared from the window to presumably go look at his bed.

After a bit, Cloud rolled over and sat up. He stretched downward to look at the bed. His eyes widened at the sight of the vent.

“Looks good, right?” Zack asked. “What do you think?”

“We still need to do something about the cameras,” Cloud muttered. He stood, making his way over to the tray of food. “Otherwise, we’ll get caught.”

Zack glanced back at his camera.

The easiest thing would be to just cover it with a blanket. It would be too difficult to have someone try to make it to the security room to shut the cameras off.

“We’ll figure that out later,” Zack decided. “Closer to when we agree on what to do.”

There was a small grunt from Cloud and Zack figured that he agreed with the plan.

Cloud was slowly eating the oatmeal that had been provided. It was plain oatmeal, but it was warm and his body craved something other than hardtack.

The door to Prompto’s room opened and Cloud stopped eating to listen.

“Come along, MT.”

“U-uh, where are we going?” Prompto asked nervously.

The scientists hadn’t come to get him once since he had arrived. Why had it changed?

“Don’t question us!” the scientist snapped. “Now come on!”

Prompto gave a small squeak and followed the scientists out.

The doors to Prompto’s room slammed shut.

Cloud frowned, wondering what was going to happen to Prompto. Perhaps they were finally going to try mixing mako with his meteor shards.

Returning to his bed, Cloud sat down to finish his oatmeal.

Zack looked through the window. “Hey, Spike. What’s up with the food?”

Cloud bit the inside of his cheek at the question. He wondered if he should tell Zack. Hojo had used his DNA after all.

Zack watched Cloud for a bit before he moved away from the window. “You don’t have to tell me.”

“I will,” Cloud muttered, stirring his oatmeal before setting it by his side, deciding he wasn’t hungry. “Just…give me some time.”

“No problem, Spike.” Zack leaned against the wall. “Take all the time you need. I’ll be right here.”

Cloud sighed, closing his eyes. “Thank you.”

He laid back in his bed to stare at the ceiling.

Zack slid to the floor to sit, waiting for the scientists to get them for tests.

No scientists came.

Zack was starting to doze after a while of waiting. He startled awake when a screeching alarm sounded throughout the complex. He jumped to his feet, glancing around.

A voice crackled over the loudspeaker. “Containment breach. Experiment 13 and MT 9-362 have escaped. Lockdown commenced.”

“MT?” Zack muttered. He only knew of one MT.

Prompto was trying to leave? That was suicide!

“Prompto’s getting out,” Cloud said from his side. “What should we do?”

“We’re leaving too. Cameras are still on, but I doubt anyone will be watching the monitors with this going on.”

Cloud nodded. He knelt by his bed to pry off the vent. With the duct exposed he could see that it was a bit smaller than he originally thought. It was doable, though.

Crawling into the duct, Cloud followed it until he came to a split. He glanced to his right to see Zack.

Zack waved. “Guess we’re going left.”

Cloud turned down the left route and continued straight. He didn’t even know where he was going. He hoped he was heading somewhere safe.

A noise caught his attention and Cloud paused, head tilted. It sounded like claws scrambling on the metal of the duct.

Cloud stuck his foot out to stop Zack.

Zack tried to look around him. “What’s up?”

“I hear something.”

Zack went quiet, listening intently. He heard the claws as well’ they sounded like they were coming closer. “What do we do?”

Cloud glanced around.

They were at another split with two choices. Go straight or right.

Listening a bit, Cloud could hear the noise echoing but couldn’t pinpoint the direction. He decided to guess.

“Right.” Cloud went down the right duct, Zack following behind him.

The duct went straight for the longest time and Cloud was so focused on escaping that he didn’t hear the noise until he collided with someone.

“Cloud!”

Cloud rubbed his head then blinked at who he saw. “Prompto?”

Prompto grinned. “I was looking everywhere for you! We gotta go.”

“No shit,” Zack said. “What did you—what is that?”

Squeezing past Prompto was a red creature.

Cloud recognized it as the dog-like creature in the cell he had seen before.

A short mane ran down its back and the dog lacked a right eye. Red XIII was branded into its left shoulder.

“Oh, this is Red XIII,” Prompto said. “He helped me get out.”

The small dog looked at Zack and Cloud then dipped its head. “Greetings.”

Zack gasped as Red XIII spoke in a slightly squeaky voice. “It can talk?!”

“Shh!” Cloud said sharply. “You’ll draw attention to us.”

Zack slunk down a bit lower, staring at Red XIII in awe.

“Can you help us find a way out?” Cloud asked Red XIII.

Red XIII licked his mouth then nodded. “I can sniff an exit route, yes. Follow me.”

Red XIII trotted off down a duct in front of the group.

Cloud let Prompto go next then he followed behind the blond with Zack bringing up the rear.

“What happened, Prompto?” Zack asked. “What made you do this so suddenly?”

Prompto remained quiet for a bit before he muttered, “They were going to try and impregnate me…”

Cloud’s eyes widened before he grit his teeth.

Of course, Hojo would want to try that. Mix mako infused cells with the meteor shards in Prompto’s blood to try to make a separate super soldier. He wasn’t surprised.

“Seriously?” Zack whispered. “That’s awful.”

“You have the gene then,” Cloud muttered. “For becoming pregnant.”

Prompto nodded, looking over his shoulder at Cloud. “Yeah. How did you know it was a specific gene?”

Cloud ducked his head to avoid Prompto’s stare. “Just a guess…”

Prompto didn’t seem convinced but if he had figured out why Cloud avoided answering with the truth he remained silent on the matter.

“Up this way,” Red XIII whispered, heading towards an incline in the ducts. He tried to climb up the incline but slid down, paws unable to find any purchase.

Prompto picked the small dog creature up around the middle, setting him at the top of the incline,

“My thanks,” Red XIII murmured, tilting his head before he continued.

The three followed behind Red XIII as he led them to what they hoped was an exit.

Red XIII stopped on top of a grate, staring down into the area below. “Over here.”

Prompto looked at the grate, noticing what appeared to be a parking garage. “A garage?”

“You can obtain a car to escape.”

“We can’t drive,” Zack said. “We need the keys anyway.”

Red XIII tilted his head, ear flicking. “Can you not hotwire the car to start it without a key?”

Cloud hummed, biting his lip.

Hotwiring was just taking the wires and attacking them in different orders to start the car without need of a key, right?

“We could try it,” Cloud relented. “It’s better than running on foot.”

Prompto nodded and pried the grate off, setting it to the side,

Red XIII jumped down first and Prompto followed. Cloud went next and Zack was last.

The group hid behind the nearest car, looking around for any signs of guards and to spot potential rides.

“What about that one?” Prompto asked, pointing to a truck.

It was a blue two-seater with a bed in the back. Large enough for the four of them.

“Seems fine to me,” Zack said.

Cloud nodded.

The four made their way over to the truck and Cloud tried the driver door, finding it unlocked.

He slid between the pedals and the driver’s seat to pry off the panel beneath the steering wheel so he could access the wires.

While Cloud worked at hotwiring the truck, the other three kept watch.

“So where are we going to go anyway?” Zack asked, leaning against the truck and crossing his harms. “I mean, Shinra has eyes everywhere.”

Prompto remained silent. He didn’t know any place in Midgar so he wasn’t going to be much help.

“We’ll figure it out as we go,” Cloud grumbled, stripping the wires with ridged scissors he had found in the truck. “For now, our plan is getting out of here.”

Red XIII hopped into the back of the truck while Cloud worked on trying to get the right combination of wires.

Zack noticed two guards walking nearby, chatting to each other. “Oh, crap.”

“Uh, Cloud?” Prompto asked as Zack got into the back of the truck.

“Ow,” Cloud hissed when one of the wires shocked him. He huffed, tying the wires together. “What?”

“We got trouble,” Zack said.

As the truck rumbled to life, Cloud stood and spotted the guards. “Everyone in.”

Prompto went to the passenger side as Cloud got into the driver’s seat.

The guards heard the doors closing and immediately locked onto the truck, raising their weapons.

“Halt right there!”

“Not happening,” Cloud muttered as he shifted the truck into drive before slamming his foot on the pedal.

Both guards squeaked and jumped to the sides to avoid the truck barreling towards them.

Cloud drove the truck out of the parking garage and out into the open.

The sun glinted off the tall buildings that dominated the area.

“Wow…” Prompto whispered, staring at the buildings in awe.

He hadn’t ever been outside the facility in Niflheim.

“Forgot how bit it was…” Zack muttered as he also stared at the buildings, leaning against the back of the truck with Red XIII in his lap.

Cloud focused on trying to find them a route out of the city. He stared at the signs above the highway to see if there was nay place that would be safe.

There had to be a place where Shinra didn’t have that good of security or a grasp on its people.

His eyes caught the sign for the Sector 5 slums and Cloud knew that the slums would be a better place to hide than directly in the city. They could at least lay low until they knew it was safe to keep moving. Nibelheim would probably be safe to hide in or Zack’s hometown of Gongaga.

The slums would be good enough for now. There were few people that trusted Shinra and vagrants appeared almost daily so they wouldn’t draw attention to themselves. At least Cloud hoped so.

Glancing in the rearview mirror to make sure they weren’t being followed, Cloud switched lanes so the truck was heading down the ramp leading into the slums.

As the truck’s taillights disappeared from view, a figure hovered above the highway staring in the direction of the truck.

The figure was some sort of wraith, robed with a black hole for a face. It lacked any arms and legs, pale powder trickling off its body.

The being watched the truck for several seconds longer before it dove down into the road, vanishing in a scattering of dust.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a flower girl finds some runaways in her church

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> super short chapter but eh

Cloud glanced at Prompto out of the corner of his eye. 

The blond was asleep, head against the window of the truck.

Cloud had been driving for several hours, the asphalt giving way to dirt roads. He was searching for a place they could ditch the truck. Shinra was after them and was aware of what truck they stole. Getting rid of the target on their back was the first priority.

Cloud sighed, shaking his head to clear it. The night was giving way to pink sunrise and he was exhausted sitting in the driver’s seat.

Zack opened the window in the back. “You need a break?”

“No. I’m fine.”

“You sure? I can take over.”

Cloud shook his head. “We can’t stop yet.”

Zack gave a hum before he nodded. “All right. If you’re sure.”

“I am.”

Zack decided to drop the subject, closing the window.

Red XIII looked up at Zack from his position in Zack’s lap. “He is tired.”

“Yeah, but he’s also stubborn.”

“He shouldn’t stress himself.”

“It’s Cloud. He’s always been like this.”

Red XIII lowered his head but remained silent.

After another hour of driving, the road became covered in piles of scrap metal and garbage.

Cloud stopped the truck and shook Prompto awake. “Come on. We’re going to walk from here.”

Prompto rubbed his eyes with a yawn while Cloud got out of the truck.

“We should cover the truck to hide it,” Zack suggested.

Cloud nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

Red XIII trotted over to Prompto who picked him up.

Zack and Cloud grabbed sheets of metal to set them against the truck, tattered tarps thrown over the top. The truck was eventually hidden beneath a pile of scrap, looking as if it had always been there.

“Where are we?” Zack wondered.

“Sector 5,” Cloud said. “We can go to Sector 1. It would be a better place to hide.”

“For how long?” Zack asked. “They’ll find us eventually.”

Cloud shook his head. “We can stay for as long as possible. If we think we’ll be found out, we can leave Midgar.”

“Leave Midgar?” Prompto whispered. “And go where?”

“Somewhere Shinra’s eyes can’t reach.”

“Where do we go now though?” Zack asked. “We look suspicious.”

They were still dressed in their clothes from the facility. It wasn’t like they had money to buy different clothes though.

“I’ll figure it out,” Cloud muttered. “For now, let’s keep moving.”

Zack and Prompto nodded.

Together they continued walking in a direction they hoped would lead to a town or some sort of civilization. After an hour of walking and no sign of anything remotely lively, the group came across a dilapidated church.

“Why don’t we take a break?” Zack asked as he looked the church over. “Could be a good place to stop.”

Cloud stared up at the church. It didn’t look like anyone had been there in ages. He sighed. “All right. Just for a while.”

Inside, the church was empty except for a few pews scattered around and a patch of yellow flowers near the pulpit.

Prompto gasped as he ran over to the flowers.

While Prompto and Red XIII smelled the flowers, Zack looked at Cloud. “What now?”

Cloud shook his head with a heavy sigh. “We need different clothes. And food.”

“We have no money.”

“I know. I know, just give me a second.”

While Cloud thought of their next move, Zack explored the church. Other than the flowers, nothing else lived there. Zack hadn’t seen any flowers during their trek and wondered if the church was the only place they grew.

“All right.” Cloud came over to Zack and Prompto. “We have no money, but we can still get stuff.”

“How?” Zack asked. “Steal it?”

Cloud nodded.

“What? No. I was joking!”

Cloud scowled at Zack. “We need clothes and food. It’s our only option.”

Zack rubbed the back of his neck. “Ah…. all right, I guess…”

“Good. You go get clothes. I’ll get the food.”

“Got it.”

“What should I do?” Prompto asked as Red XIII rolled in the flowers.

“You and Red stay here.”

Prompto deflated at the command. “Oh...”

“If anyone comes, you hide.”

Prompto nodded. He watched Cloud and Zack leave then huffed, flopping on his back. “No fair. I want to help out, too.”

Red XIII shook himself off then moved to Prompto’s side. “It’s not that they don’t trust you. It’s because a larger group will draw attention.”

“Yeah, I guess so…”

Red XIII laid beside Prompto’s head. “They care about your safety.”

“I know…” Prompto closed his eyes. “I just want to be useful.”

“I’m sure they understand, but right now it’s dangerous.”

“Yeah.”

Red XII remained silent for a while before he suddenly lifted his head, ears perked. “Someone’s coming.”

“Is it Cloud and Zack?” Prompto asked as he sat up.

“No.”

Prompto got to his feet, picking up Red XIII. “Then we need to hide.”

Red XIII and Prompto looked around for a hiding spot until Prompto decided to slide under the nearest pew, setting the canine right beside him.

A few seconds later, someone appeared at the threshold to the church. She was Zack’s age with long brown hair braided at the back.

Prompto wondered if she was someone from the slums, watching as she approached the bed of flowers.

“Good morning, my friends,” she murmured as she knelt in front of the flowers. “How are you today?”

Prompto tilted his head. She was talking to the flowers?

The girl nodded like the flowers were telling her something. “I see. What’s that? We have a visitor?”

Prompto gasped and shrank back when she glanced in his direction.

The girl stood up and started to approach the pew. “Come on out. Don’t be scared.”

Red XIII ran out before Prompto could stop him, growling at the girl.

She didn’t appear to be frightened of the intimidating pup, giving a small laugh. “Oh, aren’t you feisty…” She knelt, holding out her hand. “I won’t hurt you.”

Red XIII slowly stopped growling, relaxing his stance, before he approached her to sniff her hand.

“There we go,” the girl murmured as she patted Red XIII. “Where on earth did you come from?”

Red XIII closed his eyes before looking at Prompto.

The girl tiled her head. “Do you have another friend under there?”

Prompto backed up more as the girl began to come closer.

“Hey, leave him alone!” Cloud shouted from the doorway.

The girl stopped, startled by the appearance.

Zack came behind Cloud as they approached the girl.

“Oh, I’m sorry….I didn’t know this little guy was your friend.”

Prompto scrambled out from his hiding spot and ran behind Cloud.

“Oh…” the girl breathed. “I didn’t know...”

“Get out of here,” Cloud growled, holding out an arm to protect Prompto. “We found it first.”

The girl gave a laugh. “Actually, I found it first, years ago.”

“We should leave,” Zack muttered. “It isn’t safe here.”

Cloud nodded.

The girl spotted the number tattooed on the back of Cloud’s hand and took a step forward. “Wait, I can help you.”

Cloud glared at her while Zack became curious.

“Help us? Really?”

The girl nodded. “My name is Aerith. I don’t work with Shinra. I know a place that’s safe from them.”

Zack looked at Cloud and Prompto. “What do you think?”

“I say no,” Cloud grumbled. “We can’t trust her.”

“We can,” Red XIII murmured. “She is not lying.”

Aerith smiled at Red XIII sticking up for her.

Cloud sighed. “Fine, do as you wish. But I still don’t trust you.”

Aerith rolled her eyes then jogged past the group. “Follow me!”


End file.
